Heart in a Box
by yaoi-is-wowie21
Summary: ON HIATUS. The tale of Davy Jones and the chest containing his heart is one that spreads across the boundaries of worlds.... Investigation by a scientist and the newest member of Organization XIII can lead to complications. Vexen x Marluxia
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Heart in a Box  
**Characters/Pairing: **Vexen/Marluxia  
**Rating: **PG  
**Warnings: **None so far.  
**Disclaimer: **Kingdom Hearts is, most obviously, owned by big name companies and not by a girl sitting at a laptop on her bedroom floor.  
**Summary:** The tale of Davy Jones and the chest containing his heart is one that spreads across the boundaries of worlds... Investigation by a scientist and the newest member of Organization XIII can lead to complications.  
**A/N: **First two paragraphs are the prompts written for me by **silvestris **from LiveJournal. This is for you, darling!  
And yes, the title on this one sucks. Live with it.

**Heart in a Box**

Luxord had come back from his assigned domain one day, telling stories of a figure of legend, a captain sailing the seas, crewing a ship of damned souls. But what made this ghost-story different than so many other was that the captain was no spirit but flesh and blood, and he _had no heart_. According to the tale, the man had carved out his own heart, hiding it away for safekeeping in a locked chest, leading now a half existence without true feelings, yet plagued by memories of them. Practically one of their own.

Further research could prove to be invaluable to their cause, their resident scientist argued, quite excited at the prospect of investigating the subject further. Now if only that annoying neophyte hadn't offered to come as his bodyguard, claiming an interest in hearts and memories as a poor excuse for ambition and simple-minded curiosity...

X

It was a surprising tale, truth be told. To learn of a man who had willingly put away his heart. It wasn't as if they had never heard of someone who had tried this before, of course not. But it was not a story to dismiss lightly. Several of their members wanted to ignore it, deeming that researching this rumored man would be a waste of time.

Vexen however had taken an interest in what Luxord had said. And so, it wasn't long until he found himself before the Superior.

"Ah, Vexen. As you probably already know, Luxord has, shall I say, dug up some rather interesting news..."

"I know all about it," Vexen responded, nodding. "And I must say, it has intrigued me greatly."

"Yes. I'm sure Luxord has gone on about it in great detail already."

"He seems keen on telling everyone how he would have been able to take this supposedly invincible man down had he not been supposed to report back here," Vexen said, mentally cringing at the thought of some of the more...enthusiastic members of the Organization.

"It's fortunate he didn't, then," Xemnas remarked, turning his gaze from whatever far off point he had been looking at towards Vexen. "I know you like to occupy yourself with your own experiments before other's, but — "

"You would like me to look into this further?"

"I insist."

Vexen looked pleased with himself. Going off world into probable danger wasn't always the first thing he liked to do in his spare time, but he wasn't going to complain. He'd got the mission he'd wanted, and with nothing to it. He would have laughed if he wasn't in Xemnas's presence.

"There is one thing I must add," Xemnas continued, either ignoring or oblivious to Vexen's delight.

"And what is that?"

"You'll be taking our newest associate, Number Eleven."

"What?" This had been unexpected. Quite unexpected. If this new Nobody was not a scientist, then there was little point in letting him tag along. He would only serve as a nuisance, Vexen was sure of it. "And why is this, Xemnas?"

"He has expressed a desire to look into the situation as well," Xemnas answered. "I don't believe he will be any sort of hindrance."

"Xemnas, sir," Vexen started, playing his respect card right away, "if he does not have any experience in the art of — "

"He is a quick learner, so far as I can tell. Which is another reason, Vexen, that I need your cooperation. I'd like you to keep an eye on him at all times, and assess what you think he is capable of doing for our goal." Xemnas looked Number IV in the eye. "Can you do this?"

"Yes, yes, of course," Vexen murmured, happy plans that had already been starting to form in his head shattering. He nodded at Xemnas. "Is that all?"

"That is all, Number Four. I hope you do not disappoint me with this mission," the Superior said. "You may leave for Port Royal when you see fit."

"Thank you." Vexen walked quickly over to the door, nearly getting a hand on it when Xemnas added thoughtfully,

"And Vexen? Don't bloody the man more than absolutely necessary."

"If you say so, Xemnas."

Well, Vexen mused as he slipped out of the room, at least he didn't say I can't mess with his head in any way.

X

The Nobody in question was waiting down in Vexen's makeshift laboratory, idly browsing through various bottles and accessories that lined the counters. He didn't look up the first time Vexen cleared his throat, though the latter was fairly sure that he had heard him come in.

"You must be Number Eleven," Vexen stated, eyeing the younger man measuredly. "I'd prefer it if you didn't go through my things. If I _must _take you along with me to Port Royal, I would like to at least have you understand a few of the basic ideas of courtesy."

"Well, they weren't lying when they said you had your knickers permanently in a twist," Number XI replied, unfazed by Vexen's remarks. He spun around, eyes gleaming with a nearly perfected amount of enthusiasm. It was impressive, for a Nobody who hadn't really been a Nobody for all that long yet. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"You can skip the formalities. Xemnas has informed me that you are to be assisting me on my current assignment." Vexen paused, gaze fixed on the other's quiet grin. "You may address me as Vexen, or sir. I'm sure we'll get along beautifully if you don't even bother trying to talk to me at all. So, what is it you're calling yourself?"

"The name's Marluxia, Vexen," the man answered, tone still cheerful despite Vexen's aloof instructions.

"Marluxia, yes," Vexen mused, stepping over to the counter and rifling through the items Marluxia had just been going through a minute before. "I think, when we get back, you are going to take some time to reorganize everything in here, Number Eleven."

For merely a second, Vexen swore that he caught a spark of annoyance flicker through Marluxia's expression, but the younger Nobody was still falsely cheerful. Tapping the tabletop thoughtfully, Vexen fished for anything else he had to tell the boy before they set off.

"Now, this mission might be incredibly important to this Organization," he began, "or it might not. Either way, I think full, unyielding cooperation from you—"

"I'll do what I think is necessary, sir," Marluxia cut across him, smirk showing through his polite smile.

Vexen was silent. He really didn't want to get into an argument with this man right now, he really didn't. Sighing softly, he turned to Marluxia, returning the other's fake grin with a slightly unpleasant one. "Tell me, have you gotten the hang of traveling through the portals of darkness yet?"

"Not completely, no—"

"Good. Then this will be something of an experience."

X

It was somewhat disconcerting, sending your body through space and possibly time in all of three seconds. The fact that it was unnaturally dark didn't quite help.

Vexen stepped from the portal with ease, casually brushing the hair from his eyes as he looked around. He had never taken much interest in the worlds the others had been in charge of, but he now realized that doing so would have been a reasonably good idea. Oh well, there was nothing they could do about it now. Why waste time going back when they were already there?

The sounds of a portal closing behind him prompted Vexen to turn around. Marluxia was shuffling over, a slightly disgruntled expression on his face. "That was...interesting," Number XI murmured thoughtfully, blinking. "I didn't feel anything, but I _knew_ something was happening, so..."

"You felt it?" Vexen supplied.

"Precisely."

Vexen had to give him credit, none of the other new recruits had been able to pinpoint that feeling of unevenness that traveling through darkness brought. It was a little odd, having someone with him that might just know what he was talking about. Of course, that could also cause problems as well.

"It's rather dismal here," Marluxia commented offhandedly, peering at the scenery behind the older Nobody. Thick clouds hung overhead, casting darkness over the town's port. Stone buildings and streets managed to make the place look even more somber.

"I'd noticed," Vexen replied curtly. "We should start moving. Ask about town, but don't draw any unnecessary attention to yourself. Can you do that?"

"Of course, Vexen," Marluxia answered, scoffingly. "What do you take me for, an idiot?"

You'd be surprised, Vexen thought. Try taking someone like Axel on a mission.

X

If you hid in the shadows around Port Royal long enough, you'd find that it was quite easy to stumble upon information from the general populace. Rumors spread fast, and there is always _someone_ around to listen to them.

Vexen wasn't one hundred percent sure that letting Marluxia go off by himself for the time being was the smartest thing to do, but what better way was there to gather information than split up? At any rate, if the neophyte did anything undesirable, it'd give Vexen a chance to take out his annoyance on someone.

Hushed voices appeared around the corner behind him, but Vexen took no notice. He had learned several interesting things about this place, chief among them more stories of Davy Jones and the world's apparent lack of Heartless. No Heartless would make their job easier and quicker, and easier and quicker was what the Organization strived for, among other things.

Vexen contemplated searching for Marluxia to see what he had discovered. This consideration with rapidly cut short as screams sounded from the alley just ahead, followed by a muffled thump. The blonde sighed, making his way around barrels and boxes and towards the noise.

"What are you doing?" he asked, sounding weary.

A large, burly man was pressed up against the brick wall of a nearby building, Marluxia standing menacingly over him. Thick vines snaked their way from Marluxia's hands to the man, holding him down and creeping up and around his neck and mouth. Marluxia's didn't look up when Vexen arrived.

"This cretin tried to mug me," Marluxia snarled, as the vines tightened. The trapped man panicked silently, the vines constricting his ability to shout.

"We don't need any unnecessary deaths, Marluxia," Vexen told him chillily. "That's something that I would classify under 'unnecessary attention'."

"He's only losing a little oxygen." When Vexen only continued to stare blankly at him, Marluxia shrugged and loosened his hold. The man fell to the ground, unconscious. "It's not like I had anything to steal, anyway."

"Let it be a lesson to all thieves and muggers who cross our path, yes, yes," Vexen said dryly, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. The younger people were, the easier it appeared to be able to offend them. "More importantly—"

"What have I found? Why, I was just getting to that." Marluxia cleared his throat, following Vexen out of the alleyway. "From those that believe in this Davy Jones, it's said that there's man, a captain of a pirate ship, that knows of a way to find him," Marluxia reported. "And to find _that_ man, then a city called Tortuga is the place to go."

Vexen nodded. It was almost exactly what he had heard. Good interrogative skills on this one, albeit inauspicious interrogative skills. Well, the information matched up, and that was all that mattered. If they wanted to observe Davy Jones, then the most logical course of action would be to go to a man that could take them to him. It was off to Tortuga, then.

_TBC..._


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** Kingdom Hearts is, most obviously, owned by big name companies and not by a girl sitting at a laptop on her bedroom floor.  
**Warnings:** None so far.  
**A/N:** Gah. First time writing anything Pirates of the Caribbean. I don't think I have Jack's speaking style down quite yet...  
Um, and I think I've sort of mutilated PotC2 canon in order to fit it in with the time line of KH2 canon. This story taking place before Sora came and all that... We'll see how it works out later. xD

**Heart in a Box  
Chapter2**

There were few people that could sum up Tortuga properly without a lot of words. Vexen was one of these people.

Tortuga was what Vexen fathomed Organization XIII would be if things ever got out of hand. It was complete and utter lack of self control, that's what it was. And it was beginning to get on the scientist's nerves.

Marluxia, on the other hand, was quite fascinated with the place.

"Why would anyone want to _consume_ that much alcohol?" he pondered, watching two men currently in the middle of a fierce drinking contest. The crowd surrounding the men was cheering them on loudly, eager to see who would fall over first.

"Sheer stupidity," muttered Vexen, who was currently in the middle of observing a small fist fight escalate into a full-out brawl outside the pub. One of the participants came crashing through the window into the room, knocking over a table. Someone handed him a bottle of rum as he got up and pushed him back out the door.

"Certainly there's no point to any of this?"

"There's no point to anything in life," Vexen replied offhandedly, motioning Marluxia to follow him away from the noise of the crowd. Marluxia sat down at a table, looking rather irritated.

"I feel as if I'm wearing tights," he grunted, looking down at his newly acquired clothing with distaste.

"I believe they're called breeches," Vexen supplied, sitting down across from him. "You chose to assist me here — therefore, there will be no complaining about anything whatsoever."

"You're just saying that because you haven't realized how ridiculous you look," Marluxia retorted, earning himself a glare from the blonde Nobody.

"It'd be best for you to hold your tongue, Number Eleven," Vexen said coolly, thought not before glancing down at his own attire. Before arriving at Tortuga, he had thought it wise that they dress according to the world's standards. This proved more difficult than he had guessed it would be once he realized that a great majority of the world had no standards. In the end, they had settled for long-sleeved shirts and breeches, feeling that would be most inconspicuous. Marluxia, however, couldn't resist acquiring (or as Vexen put it, stealing) two long overcoats for the both of them. Vexen felt a little more at home in that.

"Of course, sir."

Vexen glared at the younger Nobody. He could barely tell if Marluxia was being sincere or critical "I believe getting out of here as quickly as possible would be very beneficial to our health," the scientist muttered, rubbing his forehead. He was one used to silence and utter coldness. He was used to laboratories, not missions made all the more complicated by pesky sidekicks that liked to argue.

With a sweep of his hand, Marluxia stood abruptly, pacing out towards the center of the noisy pub. With one sentence he silenced the entire room.

"Does anyone know where I can find a man named Jack Sparrow?"

Not exactly the most inconspicuous tactic ever, Vexen mused, but quite effective. This neophyte had some skills, apparently. That, or this Jack Sparrow was an extremely well known person, for better or for worse.

"Captain Jack Sparrow, if you please," a voice from the other side of the room called. Vexen tried to get a good look at the man who had spoken, but there were too many people in the way.

"Do you have a ship, Mister Sparrow?" Marluxia replied, though it was once again hard to tell if he was being serious or sarcastic.

There was a slight pause. The awkward silence in the pub was made all too clear. "As you were, men! And, uh, women!"

Reluctantly, the crowd around them went back to whatever they had been doing. Several people decided this was an excuse to buy another round of drinks. The clamor came back.

Marluxia started towards the voice, out of Vexen's range of view. He got up quickly, following the man to the opposite corner of the place. At a table tucked into the corner sat a man with an inordinate amount of makeup and accessories on, bottle held in one hand.

"I'm your Cap'n Jack Sparrow," he said with a slight slur, tilting the bottle towards them in greeting. "And who might you gents be?"

"We are in need of some information," Vexen answered, scanning over the merrymakers around them to make sure no one was listening in.

"And possibly a ship," Marluxia added promptly. The blonde shot him a questioning glance, but Marluxia shook his head, telling him to wait until later to ask.

Sparrow nodded, gesturing towards the empty seats across from him jovially. "Well, I can see what I can do about the information," he told them, taking a swig of alcohol. "And perhaps the ship. What're you willing to give me in return?"

Marluxia looked like he wanted to reply, so Vexen motioned for him to speak. "I'm sure payment can be arranged. What would you like?"

The rum bottle froze halfway to the pirate's mouth. Suspicion filled his tone. "Now, I think that you're just a little too eager to be parting with your valuables," he commented, gaze flicking between the two men before him.

"We merely have need for answers, is all," Marluxia said firmly. "Money is of little value to people like us."

Vexen smirked. Maybe he wouldn't even have to do anything for this mission. If that was the case, he'd even put up with Marluxia's smart-alecky remarks. At least for a little while. "I assume it is money you want?"

"What's money to a pirate who can steal all he wants, eh?" Sparrow replied, looking cheerful again. "No, what I need is — Ah, but we can't be making a deal without knowing the terms. Tell Captain Jack Sparrow what you need to know."

Vexen narrowed his eyes at the supposed pirate captain, hoping that what Marluxia had discovered was true. "We need to talk about Davy Jones."

Sparrow's demeanor seemed to change instantly. "I'll have nothing to do with that man!"

"Oh, but you have already, haven't you?" Marluxia said, dropping his voice. "Yes, that seems likely..."

"The story of Davy Jones's heart," Vexen continued, "or lack thereof. Is it true?"

Sparrow regarded them carefully for a moment, weighing the options in his mind. "Do you believe it's true?"

"It's quite possible, yes."

"And what do want to know about him?"

"We want to know how to locate him."

Jack Sparrow stared at the two of them. "You've got to be bloody insane. No one wants to find Davy Jones. It's his heart they're after. Ah..." he trailed off, closing his eyes in understanding. "You want to get your hands on Jones's heart."

Vexen and Marluxia exchanged glances. It couldn't possibly be this easy.

"I'm afraid you got us down exactly," replied Marluxia, faking a sigh. "I was told you would be the best bet we had on finding Jones."

At this, Sparrow's face broke into a grin. "You were, were ya? I'm gonna gut the scoundrel who told you that." Setting his bottle down on the table, he added, "I'll make you two a deal. I help you track down the heart of Davy Jones, and you help me get my ship back. Savvy?"

Vexen considered the options. This pirate did seem like he knew of a way to get to the heart, which would most certainly be useful in his research for Organization XIII. And anyway, how hard could retrieving a ship be? If they needed to, they could just leave the world once their goals here were complete.

"Savvy," Marluxia agreed, before Vexen could say anything. The Chilly Academic glowered at him. What did Number XI think we was doing, calling the shots? Even if that had been was he was going to do as well. Sparrow beamed at them, reaching for his drink and finishing it off with one gulp.

X

Sparrow led the way out into the crisp night air of a Tortuga alley. It wasn't exactly the quietest, but it gave them a little more privacy than inside.

"All right. You want to find Davy Jones's heart, you say?"

"Look, we've gone over this point several times," Marluxia interjected crossly.

"I know. That was just for emphasis," Sparrow explained, digging around in his pocket as he spoke. "I have just the thing you need, lad." He opened a fist, revealing an worn looking compass.

"A compass." Vexen raised an eyebrow. "That's going to help us?"

"Yes, you see, for this compass points not to the north, but to what your heart desires most." Confidently, he dropped the compass into Vexen's outstretched hand.

"I don't think..." Marluxia whispered, wondering if the older Nobody had seen the flaw in this seemingly perfect plan.

Vexen nodded, but opened the compass nevertheless. The needle stood stock still. He gave it a shake, spinning the needle around until it came to a complete stop opposite where it had started. "I'm afraid this will be no use to us," he announced. "Unless Jones's heart is everywhere at once. Or nowhere at all."

Sparrow made a face at this news, taking his compass back from Vexen. "And why's that?"

"It's complicated."

The pirate pocketed the compass, thinking. "It's odd, but...if you really need the help, I can give you one more thing."

"And what's that?" asked Marluxia, curious despite himself. What else could this man have, aside from a magic compass?

"Directions to a friend of mine."

_TBC..._


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **Kingdom Hearts is, most obviously, owned by big name companies and not by a girl sitting at a laptop on her bedroom floor.  
**Warnings: **None so far.  
**A/N: **Shorter chapter this time, in which I get to screw up both Sparrow's AND Tia Dalma's vernacular. Oh well. I hope it's somewhat interesting.

**Heart in a Box  
Chapter 3**

Vexen wasn't quite sure exactly what had happened, but soon enough the pirate Jack Sparrow was throwing together a crew and readying a ship for this surprise visit to someone he had assured would be able to assist. The Chilly Academic didn't know if he should bother trusting his assurances — the man clearly had a few lose screws.

"I thought you said you needed us to get your ship back," Marluxia commented dryly, observing the clamor on deck from the dock below. "I must say, this was a pretty easy job."

"No, this isn't my ship!" Sparrow shouted back, after directing a couple of men towards a stack supplies still piled up off to the side. "The Black Pearl's a damn sight better 'n this heap. No, this is just my makeshift crew. Didn't get everyone I would have liked, but...it'll do."

Vexen and Marluxia exchanged glances, as if to say, "Do you really want to be stuck out a sea with this man?"

"As long as it gets us where we're going," Vexen told Sparrow, starting up the gangplank. Marluxia made to follow, but was stopped by a pair of sacks that were shoved into his arms.

"Make yourself useful, sonny," a grungy looking man with a nose ring grunted, gesturing towards the ship.

Marluxia glowered at his retreated back, resisting the urge to just stab the man where he stood. Sonny? What did he look like, a ten-year old?

X

According to Sparrow, they'd reach land in two days, at the most. However, Vexen soon came to realize that a new problem was about to surface later that evening.

Most of the men had gone below to sleep, leaving the top deck clear save for a few. Vexen strolled across the deck, coming to a stop beside Number XI, who was currently retching over the taffrail.

"Feeling under the weather?" he asked, merely out of formality. The answer was quite easy to see.

Marluxia managed to shoot Vexen a glare before sticking his head back over the railing. "First, I have to cart a whole bunch of shit into the cargo hold," Marluxia growled through clenched teeth. "Now, I'm throwing up the lunch I don't remember ever having. I'm swell."

Leaning against the ship's railing a safe distance from the other Nobody, Vexen looked out over the sea, silent as he waited for Marluxia to heave overboard one final time. "What makes a Nobody get seasick?" he inquired uninterestedly, as if he didn't care to hear the answer at all.

"How should I know?" Marluxia grunted, looking rather grumpy. "You're the scientist."

"Exactly." Vexen turned, inspecting his partner's pale face. "I'm the scientist. You're not. So why are you here?"

Marluxia stared at Vexen quizzically, rubbing his forehead. "I'm here to assist you. What else?"

"Xemnas said you volunteered for this mission," Vexen continued. "You don't seem like the kind to do something just for kicks, so that option's out."

Shaking his head, Marluxia winced and answered, "I'm here because I want to be, all right? Did it ever hurt to be curious?"

"Curiosity killed the cat," murmured Vexen, but he couldn't seem to place where he had heard that.

Marluxia didn't get the chance to snap back as the boat chose that moment to dip forward harshly, and a marvelously unpleasant expression crossed his face. When he looked up from the sea swirling around the hull, Vexen was nowhere to be seen.

X

For the rest of the trip, Marluxia alternated with being sick and doing odd jobs around the ship, much to his annoyance. Vexen, on the other hand, found this rather amusing, and spent the time talking to various crew members and their captain. Sparrow was fairly talkative, but often was so vague that Vexen gave up trying to decipher what he was going on about. He revealed very little about who they were going to meet, as if this person was hiding yards away, waiting to curse anyone who spoke about them.

Bringing up the subject of Davy Jones was also a mistake, as not many of the crew was willing to speak about him. Sparrow merely waved his hands around and told Vexen to wait and to not spoil the fun.

Finally, after what seemed like ages to Marluxia (though it was actually quite shorter), Jack Sparrow announced rather dramatically,

"And this is our stop! If you two gents would be so kind as to pop into that rowboat over there, we're off to meet our charming friend, Tia Dalma."

X

They made their way down a murky river, the swampland becoming more prominent the deeper in they went. Vexen surveyed their surroundings with minimal interest; bogs and insects and bushes had never been quite his cup of tea. Marluxia, on the other hand, was looking around with something akin to contemplation.

"See something you like?" Vexen asked.

"I'm just pleased to be off that damn boat," Marluxia replied off-handedly. Vexen said nothing else after that, and the ride was finished in silence except for the occasional quip from Sparrow.

A hut emerged from the fog, sticking out of the marshy land like someone had put it there by accident. The captain guided the boat to a small dock and stepped out, motioning towards the structure.

"Well, are you going to sit there all day?" he prompted, and soon the three of them were at the door.

Knocking on the doorframe, Jack Sparrow sauntered in, grinning. A woman with dark hair and skin turned around as he entered, returning the grin with a coy smile of her own.

"Ah, Jack Sparrow!" the woman greeted him, hands on her hips. "Imagine seeing you here again, after all this time."

"Oh, you know I can't keep away from you for long, my darling Tia Dalma," the pirate shot back.

The woman, Tia Dalma, let out a short laugh, moving around the cluttered table over to the two Nobodies. "And you've brought guests. How lovely." She looked over at them with an intrigued expression as she continued to speak. "Now I reckon you'll be needing something from me, as I can't see Jack gettin' together for socializing's sake."

"The captain says you're quite knowledgeable in matters containing Davy Jones," Vexen informed her. At least, he had implied it. Vexen wasn't exactly sure if he'd ever said it like that.

"Oh, I know a good deal about him," Tia Dalma replied, reassuring the man. "But as to what you want with him..."

"They say they're after his heart," Sparrow cut in, plainly amused. Vexen glared at him for blurting it out so quickly, but nodded all the same.

"Find 'is heart?" The woman finally pulled her gaze from Vexen and back to Sparrow. "Don't tell me you've lost that compass of yours, Jack."

"Actually, it is still in my company," Sparrow told her, patting the pocket that held the peculiar compass. "But see, it doesn't work for them. A most curious thing."

Instead of looking puzzled by this information, Tia Dalma strode closer, looking between the two strangers with interest. "I've often seen to men that have lost their hearts to the fairer sex...but never have I met men who never had any in the first place."

"What, sex, or hearts?"

Marluxia shot a glare at Sparrow that was worse than the one Vexen had given him. "This is not the time," he hissed.

Jack Sparrow raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Are you saying these two don't have hearts? Why, then that'd make them like..." He trailed off, but the rest of them knew what he was going to say.

"Like Davy Jones, yes." Vexen shrugged a shoulder, appearing not at all concerned. "The thing is, our hearts aren't just hidden away, waiting for us to scoop up and put back."

"We need to work for ours," Marluxia added, a faint hint of complaint in his voice. "And from what I can tell, it's taking too long."

"So you want to steal someone's?" Sparrow snorted. "I don't think that's the way to do it."

Tia Dalma quieted him with a wave of her hand. "If help is what our two friends seek, then I shall assist. And you, Jack Sparrow. The Black Pearl's a long way away. You're better to be leaving it be."

"What? Leave my ship, and with only a short while left before Davy Jones comes to—" Sparrow faltered, falling silent.

"Hm? Do go on," Marluxia said with a slight sneer, still a little miffed about the whole boat ride here. "Or Davy Jones will what?"

"None of your business," the pirate retorted, drawing out the last word almost tauntingly. "I didn't pry as to why you want Jones's heart, hm? What's what is between me and him, savvy?"

"You've gone and made a deal with Davy Jones," Vexen stated nonchalantly, as if he'd known this for a while and had just felt like getting it out in the open. Tia Dalma let out a laugh at the look on Sparrow's face. "From that expression I say you have."

"But something's gone wrong." Marluxia circled the startled man, quickly going over ideas in his head and tossing them out just as quickly. "You want Jones's heart for yourself..."

"To blackmail him," Vexen added.

Jack Sparrow frowned at being laid out so openly like this. "And how do you figure that?"

Vexen smiled coolly. "We're very good at reading people."

Marluxia noted with a slight smirk that Vexen had said "we." It seemed he was finally getting somewhere.

_TBC..._


End file.
